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as in paradox
someone or something with qualities or features that seem to conflict with one another a loving father as well as a ruthless killer, the gangster is a living contradiction

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of contradiction Richard Avedon’s accompanying portrait discards any notion of Cat Power’s caprice; there’s no bewilderment or confusion on display, no underlying contradictions. Carrie Brownstein, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2025 The exhibition doesn’t seek to pin down identity, but to hold space for its contradictions. Okla Jones, Essence, 12 Apr. 2025 There are overlapping contradictions, just like in life. Lise Pedersen, Variety, 8 Apr. 2025 The dismantling of the prosecution would require him to ferret out inconsistencies and contradictions in Ephron’s testimony in cross-examination. Julian Sancton, HollywoodReporter, 4 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for contradiction
Recent Examples of Synonyms for contradiction
Noun
  • But here's the paradox: pursuing happiness often makes people more unhappy.
    Julian Hayes II, Forbes.com, 27 Apr. 2025
  • Many Alaskans see the prospect as an embarrassing paradox – akin to Hawaii importing pineapples or New Mexico importing green chiles.
    Brett Watson, The Conversation, 24 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • Planning staff recommended denial of the permit for the drive-thru, which would sit within 300 feet of another drive-thru to its north and the Bainbridge subdivision to its west on Lost Rapids Drive.
    Rose Evans, Idaho Statesman, 19 Apr. 2025
  • Often the oddity comes from the chilling drone of bureaucracy: the executor’s compassionate thicket of legal reasoning, an airline representative’s denial of Carrie’s quest for a bereavement discount, the dollars and cents of Dr. J’s cremation (for which Carrie is retroactively billed).
    Richard Brody, New Yorker, 18 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • Account hopes to combat misogynistic online content Creators like Andrew Tate provide a pipeline for men seeking advice about romantic rejection, physical self-esteem and economic insecurity to fall into radicalism and misogyny.
    Rachel Hale, USA Today, 29 Apr. 2025
  • Cronenberg’s rejection of the notion was just one of the first surprising musings from a discussion with Variety about his approach to art, including his consideration of the audience, embrace of technology and rejection of genre.
    William Earl, Variety, 26 Apr. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Contradiction.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/contradiction. Accessed 3 May. 2025.

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